Horns in Much Ado About Nothing

今天在看莫里哀的the school for wives里put horns on someone这种表达突然给我敲响了警钟，想起来这一本。

horns在莎士比亚的无事生非里被多次提及，比如Benedick立flag时说: “The savage bull may; but if ever the sensible Benedick bear it, pluck off the bull's horns and set them in my forehead...”

以及Beatrice谈及婚姻时: “‘God sends a curst cow short horns’; but to a cow too curst he sends none.”

以及the“noble”Claudio: ”we'll tip thy horns with gold and all Europa shall rejoice at thee.”

在正式结婚那一幕到来之前，horns作为Cuckold的代表，经常在对话里作为调笑的对象，同时也是这几位高贵的男士最隐秘的恐惧，所以当Claudio在新婚前夜一听到Hero的不忠的谣言他立即就下了定论“if I see anything to-night why I should not marry her, to-morrow in the congregation where I should wed, there will I shame her.”这也是为什么在婚礼当天Claudio当众羞辱未婚妻并称之为the most foul且甩手而去的深层原因了。